Back when Alex Scott stepped onto the pitch for his Guernsey debut against Phoenix Sports before a mere 55 spectators in 2019, his manager at the time assured, “there’s more to come from this youngster.”
This prediction turned out to be a bit of an underestimation.
Now 22 years old and a Premier League regular with the Cherries, the playmaker has just received his maiden summons to the senior England team.
His ascent from non-league prodigy to potential England player is a proper blast from the past, a journey seldom seen in the modern game.
Next stop? The World Cup?
“In my mind, there was zero possibility of making it as a pro footballer, let alone featuring in the Premier League and representing the national team as well,” Scott said previously.
“It has been a incredible half-dozen years of my life, and circumstances have transformed drastically for me and my loved ones.”
So how did Scott, known affectionately as the ‘Guernsey Grealish’, find himself at this level?
Developing in non-league
Scott’s football journey has been far from a conventional one.
He was part of over four years in Southampton’s youth system starting at eight, skipping school each Friday to fly from his island home on Guernsey to the south coast so he could attend training and feature for the club’s academy sides.
Prior to he turned 13, however, they decided to let him go. The Cherries gave him an opportunity and he was on the Cherries’ books for a while, but, as he later admitted, his mind wasn’t fully committed.
Rather, he chose to remain on the island and turn out for his local team.
“My form had dipped and traveling every week was becoming overwhelming,” he recalled.
“All I desired to relax at home with my friends at the weekend because I missed nearly several years of doing that. Getting that little bit of childhood back was something I really needed.
“Building some self-belief by returning and taking part in island football was huge for me. It was probably the most crucial factors that led me to this point.”
At the age of 16, Scott made history as the most youthful appearance-maker in Guernsey’s history when he was introduced as a 57th-minute substitute in their league match at Phoenix Sports.
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping because I was figuring out how I could get him in the team because his talent is obvious,” Guernsey boss the coach stated at the time.
“People have witnessed that – his possession of the ball is exceptional, the way he carries the ball, he’s a class act.”
Returning to the professional game
Second-tier club Bristol City – owned by Guernsey resident their owner – had been tracking his early progress after an impressive beginning in adult football and arranged a try-out in late 2019.
“The whole experience was hectic,” said Scott. “The first day I joined the youth team, the next day I was with the senior squad, which was a total surprise.
“On the Wednesday I featured for Guernsey FC in London, travelled back and on the Friday, I played for Bristol City Under-18s and scored a three goals. It was almost a certainty for me to put pen to paper on a deal.”
Within a year and a half, even some way short of his 18th birthday, he was earning his senior debut against Luton.
Scott made 83 league appearances for the Robins while still a teenager, frequently being used as a wide defender – and sometimes further forward as a number 10 – such was his versatility and flexibility. Even at that young age and playing out of position he was their best player.
With his ability to drive the ball up the pitch, and with his socks rolled down to his ankles, he earned the nickname ‘Guernsey’s Grealish’, a reference to Manchester City and national team attacking midfielder Jack Grealish.
At the end of the 2022-23 campaign he claimed the EFL Championship’s young player of the season award, was selected in the league’s best XI and was named the club’s top player and top youngster.
“No doubt, I think he’ll play for his country and I think he will progress to the top of the sport,” his former manager, Scott’s manager at the club, remarked last year.
Within three months after, he signed for the Cherries for a reported transfer fee of £25m.
Securing his major transfer
The midfielder endured a challenging first season with the Cherries, having to wait until October to make his top-flight debut after a knee injury in pre-season, and then finding himself inconsistent of the starting XI.
His second campaign was equally affected, this time by a knee operation which sidelined him for almost several months.
“I had quite a good run at the close of last season, which was good to have, then I broke my jaw,” said he.
“That felt like yet another obstacle and the year was shaping up as a pretty bad year for the first five months.”
But he was then selected by England for the Under-21 European Championships – and managed to get himself fit in time.
He started five of the England U21s’ six matches as they went on to win the tournament in Slovakia, forming a formidable partnership in midfield with Elliot Anderson, who himself has gone on to impress for the senior side under the national coach.
And he has started this season equally as impressively for his club, playing in all matches to guide them to fifth in the standings.
“Representing the England senior team would be one of the proudest occasions of my life,” the player said earlier this season.
“The responsibility is mine, I’ve got to keep progressing as a footballer, maintain my love for the game, getting better every day, and hopefully I impress the national coach and earn an opportunity.”
